You’ve been doing “all the right things” — brushing, flossing, and keeping up regular office cleanings and checkups. But you’re still struggling with gum disease — in fact, you’ve recently noticed loose teeth and other signs of infection.

While the primary cause of gum disease is dental plaque and calculus not adequately removed by regular oral hygiene and cleanings, you may also be among a small group of individuals with other risk factors that can worsen the effects of the disease. One of the most common of these factors isn’t something you can do much about — the physical characteristics you inherited from your parents. In reality, some people are more genetically prone to disease than others because their body doesn’t respond effectively to certain bacteria.

Chronic stress may also play a role in your body’s resistance level: it can both increase your risk for the disease and magnify its effects. In addition, the type of bacteria causing the disease could be a factor — our mouths contain thousands of strains, with some bacteria more difficult to control than others.

If your gum disease persists regardless of all our best efforts, we may be able to test for whether any of these other factors are involved. Determining the presence of any of these underlying factors can help us fine-tune our treatment approach.

You should know, however, that it might not be possible to effectively address every factor involved. If that’s the case, at some point it may be necessary to consider a tooth replacement option. The best choice by far are dental implants — not only are they functional and life-like in appearance, with proper care they could foster a healthier environment in your mouth by being stronger and more durable than the diseased teeth they’ve replaced.

Our ultimate goal as dentists is to alleviate gum disease and restore health and function to your teeth and gums. If that isn’t completely possible due to uncontrollable factors, we then adopt a strategy to control the disease as much as possible to preserve your teeth for as long as is prudent. This can give you time, then, to prepare yourself mentally, emotionally and financially for future teeth replacement and restoration.